Ireland will be 70 years old by the end of 2014 and, thus, is approaching the court's mandatory retirement age, the letter said. Rather than starting a new term in September, Ireland wrote, he has decided to step down before his new term begins in September.

He began his term in December 2010.

"Serving the people of Massachusetts in this great office of public trust has been a truly humbling, challenging, stimulating – albeit sometimes difficult – but always rewarding experience, and I have enjoyed each and every day of my work," Ireland wrote in his letter.

Ireland is Massachusetts' first African American chief justice.

"Chief Justice Roderick L. Ireland's voice as the head of our judiciary will be difficult to replace. Ireland deftly guided the courts through some of the most challenging times in recent history. Yet through it all, Ireland never wavered in his support for the bar and commitment to public service," Douglas Sheff, president of the Massachusetts Bar Association, said in a prepared statement.

And House Speaker Robert DeLeo offered this reaction to the news: “I congratulate Chief Justice Ireland on his tenure as the head of the oldest appellate court in North America. Justice Ireland has been a partner in crafting legislation and has become a good friend. I wish him all the best as he leaves public life."

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